Authentication and pairing of a mobile device to an external power source

ABSTRACT

A mobile device communicates with an authenticator affiliated with a recharging facility, to identify itself. To confirm that the mobile device is connected to the correct facility, the authenticator instructs the mobile device to draw electrical charge according to an identifiable pattern. Upon detecting a charge being drawn according to that pattern, the authenticator has confirmation that the identified device is connected to the facility, and permits the charging to proceed. The amount of electricity drawn during the charging procedure can be metered, and then billed to a party associated with the identified mobile device.

RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation application of application Ser. No.13/362,416, filed Jan. 31, 2012. The entire content of this applicationis hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates generally to systems and methods forauthentication of mobile devices and, more particularly, to theauthentication of a mobile electric device using a charging pattern ofthe mobile device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Many different electronic and mechanical devices include batterystorage, which are connected to the electric utility grid for recharge.Generally, costs for the energy used to recharge such mobile devices areassessed to the owner or provider of the outlet used for charging themobile device, and are billed based on meter reading at the owner'smeter associated with the outlet used for charging.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

In accordance with embodiments disclosed herein, the cost associatedwith the recharging of a mobile device can be allocated to the owner ofthe device, rather than the premises where the outlet is located,through a procedure for authenticating the device owner at the time ofrecharging the device. The mobile device communicates with anauthenticator affiliated with the recharging facility, to identifyitself. To confirm that the mobile device is connected to the correctfacility, the mobile device draws a charge according to a pattern thatis recognized by the authenticator. Upon detecting a charge being drawnaccording to that pattern, the authenticator has confirmation that anidentified device is connected to the facility, and permits therecharging to proceed. The amount of electricity drawn during therecharging procedure can be metered, or otherwise determined and thenbilled to a party associated with the identified mobile device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES

The invention is best understood from the following detailed descriptionwhen read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It isemphasized that, according to common practice, the various features ofthe drawings are not to scale. On the contrary, the dimensions of thevarious features are arbitrarily expanded or reduced for clarity.Included in the drawings are the following figures:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a system for authenticating apairing of a power source and mobile device in accordance with anexemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a method of authentication of amobile device in accordance with a first exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a graph illustrating a load pattern used in systems andmethods in accordance with exemplary embodiments of the presentinvention;

FIG. 4 is a timing diagram illustrating communications between or amonga mobile device and authenticators in accordance with a second exemplaryembodiment;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a method of managing a chargingsession in accordance with the second exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 6 is timing diagram illustrating communications between or among amobile device and authenticators in accordance with a third exemplaryembodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Mobile electric devices such as plug-in electric cars, laptop computers,notebook computers, PDAs, and cell phones, among others, areproliferating with the advent of a more mobile society. The ability torecharge such devices may be limited to electrical outlets associatedwith an owner of the mobile electric devices (e.g., where the billingaccount associated with electrical outlet and the owner of the mobiledevice are the same entity) or where the billing account ownerassociated with the electrical outlet allows the owner of the mobiledevice to recharge the mobile device at no charge. The owner associatedwith an electrical outlet generally refers to the individual or entitywho is financially obligated to pay for the electricity consumed at theelectrical outlet, which may include the owner of the electrical outletor a third party responsible for such payments.

In various exemplary embodiments, a mobile electronic device may beauthenticated to the electrical outlet, power connection or power sourceused for charging. By authenticating to such an outlet, power connectionor power source, the billing account associated with the mobile devicemay be billed for the cost of recharging of the mobile device.

In certain exemplary embodiments, an authenticator may negotiate orspecify a load pattern used by the mobile electronic device to identifyits pairing with the electrical outlet, the power source or the powerconnection.

To facilitate an understanding of the concepts that underlie theinvention, exemplary embodiments are described in which the mobiledevice is a plug-in electric vehicle. It will be appreciated, however,that the mobile electric device may be any device which is mobile andcapable of recharge from any power source such as the electric grid, agenerator, or another mobile device, among others.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a system 100 forauthenticating a pairing of a power source 122 a and mobile electricaldevice 110 in accordance with exemplary embodiments disclosed herein.Referring thereto, system 100 may include mobile electric device 110,first electric supply site 120 a, second electric supply site 120 b,first authenticator 130 a, second authenticator 130 b and electric grid140. The apparatus and functions associated with first electric supplysite 120 a are substantially the same as those of second electric supplysite 120 b.

First electric supply site 120 a may include first power source 122 aand first connector 124 a. First electric power source 122 a may beconnected to utility grid 140 for supply of electric power to firstconnector 124 a, or may be a stand alone power source for generatingelectrical power.

Although first electric power supply 122 a is shown connected toelectric grid 140, it is contemplated that any power source may be used,including both alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC) powersources such as batteries, fuel cells, photovoltaics, and electricgenerators, among others. First electric power source 122 a may includea meter/sensor 126 a and a load switch 128 a.

Meter/sensor 126 a may measure current draw through first electric powersource 122 a. Meter sensor 126 a may be coupled to first authenticator130 a. First authenticator 130 a may be located at the first electricsupply site or may be located remotely, for example, in a vicinity of aplurality of electric metering sites or in the vicinity of back office150.

Although first authenticator 130 a is shown coupled to meter/sensor 122a, it is contemplated that first authenticator 130 a may be coupled toany number of meters/sensors to measure the charge (e.g., current) drawnat a plurality of electric meter sites for authentication of theelectrical outlets, power sources or power connections with mobiledevices. In certain exemplary embodiments, one authenticator may measurecharge drawn from electric meter sites associated with a specifiedgeographic area (e.g., a parking lot, a plurality of parking spots, or arecharging center, among others). In other exemplary embodiments, suchan authenticator may be associated with or located at back office 150and may measure charge draw associated with electric meter sitesassociated with back office 150.

Load switch 128 a may be controlled by first authenticator 130 a toconnect or disconnect electric utility grid 140 or power source 120 afrom mobile device 110. Although load switch 128 a is shown to connector disconnect power entirely to/from mobile device 110, it iscontemplated that load switch 128 a may only connect or disconnect aportion of the load of mobile device 110 (e.g., charging circuits ofmobile device 110) from power source 122 a or electric utility grid 140.For example, electric meter site 120 a may continue to enable powersupply to mobile device 110 for functions such as communications withfirst authenticator 130 a and other processing functions of mobiledevice 110 using a low power connection via first connector 124 a.

Although load switch 128 a is shown as a single-pole single-throwswitching device, it is contemplated that load switch 128 a may includeother configurations to connect or disconnect other connectionsincluding, for example a ground connection, a communications connection,and/or a presence detection circuit, among others.

First authenticator 130 a may include a current sensor 131 a, acontroller 132 a, a transceiver 134 a, a memory 136 a and an antenna 138a. Mobile device 110 may include a network interface 112 having acontroller 114, transceiver 116, memory 118, and antenna 119. Controller132 a and controller 114 may establish a communication session (e.g., aninternet protocol (IP) session) via transceiver 134 a and antenna 138 aof first authenticator 130 a and transceiver 116 and antenna 119 ofnetwork interface 112. Controller 132 a may receive information(including measurements, meter readings and/or sensor readings, amongothers) from meter/sensor 126 a of first electric metering site 120 a.First connector 124 a of first electric metering site 120 a may connectto connector 115 of mobile device 110 to electrically connect powersource 122 a and/or utility grid 140 to mobile device 110.

Although a converter is not shown in FIG. 1, mobile device 110 mayinclude a converter to convert AC power to DC power. It is alsocontemplated that such a converter may be disposed between utility grid140 and mobile device 110.

System 100 may include back office 150 in communication with a pluralityof authenticators (e.g., first and second authenticators 130 a and 130b) via communication network 160. Back office 150 may include acontroller 152, a transceiver 154, and a memory 155 (e.g., includingauthentication tables 156). Controller 152 may control the operation ofback office 150. Transceiver 154 may receive and send information viacommunication network 160 to first and/or second authenticators 130 aand 130 b. Memory 155 may include data structures used to uniquelyidentify load patterns monitored by first or second authenticator 130 aor 130 b with a mobile device identifier. Authentication tables 156 mayinclude account and billing information associated with mobile devicesin system 100.

In one embodiment, authentication tables 150 may include records havingunique identifiers associated with each mobile device. When mobiledevice 110 connects to first electric metering site 120 a via firstconnector 124 a, first authenticator 130 a may monitor for a currentdraw at first connector 124 a. The current draw may have a unique loadpattern that identifies mobile device 110. For example, networkinterface 112 may have a media access control (MAC) address (e.g., aunique address) that is associated with network interface 112. The MACaddress may be encoded as a unique load pattern associated with mobiledevice 110.

In an alternate embodiment, rather than employ a public address or thelike as the identifier of the mobile device, a secure value, such as asecret key, that is stored at both the authenticator and the mobiledevice can be employed as the unique identifier of the mobile device.Furthermore, the same identification credentials can be employed by agroup of users. For instance, all of the members of a family who chargeto the same billing account can share the secret key, and use it toidentify their mobile devices to the authenticator. In a similar manner,a group address or other such form of shared credential can be employedto identify, and authenticate, all of the members of a group.

First authenticator 130 a may monitor for the unique load pattern ofmobile device 110 and may authenticate the pairing of mobile device 110with the first electric metering site 120 a (and/or first power source122 a) in response to the unique load pattern being detected. Firstauthenticator 130 a may continuously monitor first electric meteringsite 120 a via meter/sensor 126 a to determine current draw fromconnector 124 a. First authenticator 130 a may determine the start of aunique load pattern based on current draw at first connector 124 a whichis below a threshold level for a specified period of time (e.g., forgreater than one minute) followed by a series of loads (the loadpattern) which exceeds the threshold level during at least a portion ofan authentication period.

First authenticator 130 a may determine an end to the unique loadpattern based on the same or similar criteria as the start of the uniqueload pattern. That is, during the unique load pattern, load may exceed athreshold level to generate a sequence of load values above and below aload reference value, which will dynamically change based on at least aunique identifier of mobile device 110 (e.g., based on a MAC address, aunique identifier, or some other predetermined unique identifier ofmobile device 110 and associated with network interface 112). Firstauthenticator 130 a may request validation from back office 150 usingauthentication tables 156 to validate the unique load pattern of mobiledevice 110. For example, controller 132 a may convert the unique loadpattern detected from meter/sensor 126 a to a digital code and mayrequest validation of the converted code from back office 150.

Back office 150 may validate the converted code from first authenticator130 a and may provide a message indicating the authentication of mobiledevice 110. Controller 132 a of first authenticator 130 a, uponreceiving the message authenticating mobile device 110, may control loadswitch 128 a to maintain a connection between power source 122 a andmobile device 110.

In certain exemplary embodiments, first authenticator 130 a may includememory 135 a for storing program code executable by controller 132 a andfor storing information sent from authentication tables 156 for localauthentication. For example, once mobile device 110 is authenticated(e.g., paired) with first electric metering site 120 a, authenticationinformation associated with mobile device 110 (e.g., the unique loadpattern of mobile device 110) and an identifier included inauthentication tables 156 to identify mobile device 110 may be storedlocally in memory 135 a of first authenticator 130 a, such that firstauthenticator 130 a may authenticate the same mobile device in asubsequent authentication process (without back office 150) based onrules established by back office 150 (e.g., when the planned currentdraw by mobile device 110 is below a threshold, when mobile device is ofa certain type (e.g., a laptop, a PDA, a cell phone, or a plug-invehicle) or may be set as a flag in memory 135 a from back office 150based on criteria set by back office 150).

Mobile device may include an energy storage unit 170 and a energymanagement device 180. Energy management device 180 may include acontroller 182 and a metering unit 184. Controller 182 of energymanagement device 180 may control charging and discharging of energystorage unit 170 to power, for example, mobile device 110.

In certain exemplary embodiments, the energy management device 180 maybe integral to a vehicle management system. In other exemplaryembodiments, the energy management device 180 may be separate from andin communications with the vehicle management system.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of the pairing authentication in accordance withthe first embodiment. At step 210, mobile device 110 is connected to apower source (e.g., first electric metering site 120 a). At step 215,mobile device 110 may initiate a sequence of charge draws. At step 220,first authenticator 130 a may determine whether a predetermined time haselapsed since the connection of mobile device 110 to first electricmetering site 120 a. At step 225, responsive to the predetermined timebeing exceeded, mobile device 110 may be disconnected from firstelectric metering site 120 a via load switch 122 a. At step 230,responsive to the predetermined time not being exceeded, firstauthenticator 130 a may monitor for the sequence of charge draws. Atstep 235, first authenticator 130 a may determine whether the identityof mobile device 110 is recognizable from the sequence of charge draws.For example, first authenticator 130 a may match the sequence of chargedraws with a unique identifier of mobile device 110. In certainexemplary embodiments, the unique identifier of mobile device 110 may bestored in authentication tables 158 of back office 150. In suchexemplary embodiments, first authenticator 130 a may request viacommunication network 160 authentication information stored inauthentication tables 158. The request for authentication informationmay be sent via transceiver 134 a of first authenticator 130 a,communication network 160 and transceiver 154 of back office 150. Inalternate exemplary embodiments, first authenticator 130 a may includeauthentication tables (not shown) for authentication locally (withoutcommunication with back office 150).

In other alternative exemplary embodiments, first authenticator 130 amay send a logical series of bits corresponding to the sequence ofcharge draws to back office 150 via communication network 160 and backoffice 150 may determine and direct first authenticator 130 a regardingthe recognition of the identity of the mobile device from the sequenceof charge draws. Responsive to the first authenticator 130 a and/or backoffice 150 not recognizing the identity of the mobile device from thesequence of charge draws, processing is sent to step 220 to determinewhether a predetermined amount of time has elapsed since connection bymobile device 110. If the predetermined amount of time has elapsed, themobile device is disconnected at step 225, to thereby prevent a roguedevice from continuing to draw current via the authentication process.

Responsive to first authenticator 130 a and/or back office 150recognizing the identity of the mobile device from the sequence ofcharge draws, back office 150 may validate at step 240 whether therecognized mobile device has permission to draw power. For example, backoffice 150 may correlate the recognized identity of mobile device 110with a billing account and it may determine, based on billing activity,payment terms, arrearages, among others, whether to permit the draw ofpower. If the back office does not permit the draw of power, back office150 may send a message to first authenticator 130 a to block a chargingsession. For example, first authenticator 130 a may control load switch128 a to disconnect mobile device 110, at step 245. At step 250,responsive to the recognized mobile device having permission to drawpower, the first authenticator 130 a may authenticate mobile device 110and initiate a charge session. At step 255, first authenticator 130 amay determine whether a predetermined time has elapsed since thebeginning of the charge session. Responsive to the predetermined timehaving elapsed, mobile device 110 may be disconnected from firstelectric metering site 120 a using load switch 128 a. Responsive to thepredetermined time not having elapsed, first authenticator 130 a maymonitor for an indication that the charge session has ended. Forexample, first authenticator 130 a may monitor for a current draw belowa threshold level for a specified period to indicate the end of a chargesession.

If the end of a charge session is indicated, first authenticator 130 amay control load switch 128 a to disconnect mobile device 110 at step265. If the end of a charging session is not indicated by the monitoredcharge draw, at step 260, processing is transferred to step 255 todetermine if a predetermined time has elapsed since the beginning of thecharge session.

FIG. 3 is a graph of one example of a possible load pattern. The graphincludes load history 310 and filtered data 320 which corresponds toload history data with high frequency components (e.g., components abovea threshold frequency) removed. The load history represents a series ofload patterns provided by mobile device 110. Prior to sending its uniqueidentification, the mobile device may first draw current according to ageneric pattern that indicates an intent to draw power, during aninitial period 340. The load pattern during the initial period 340 mayindicate that mobile device 110 is connected to the utility grid viafirst electrical metering site 120 a, and alerts the authenticator 130 ato begin looking for a load pattern that indicates a unique identifier.Thereafter, the mobile device 110 sends its identifier during anauthentication period 350. The load pattern associated with mobiledevice 110 presents a binary pattern 330 that is derived from filtereddata 320.

In response to detection and authentication of a specified load pattern,the first authenticator 120 a may enable the initiation of a chargingperiod 360. If a valid load pattern is not detected, the firstauthenticator 120 a may control the load switch 128 a to open anddisconnect the mobile device from the external power source. That is,the first authenticator 120 a blocks charging of the mobile device 110.

In one implementation of the first embodiment, the unique identifier ofthe mobile device may be a secret that is shared between the mobiledevice and the authenticator, rather than being transmitted in theclear. For example, each of the authenticator and the mobile device maystore an algorithm that is seeded by the identifier of the mobile deviceand an identifier of the authenticator, such as its MAC address. Whenthe mobile device initiates the generic load pattern during the initialperiod 340, the authenticator can respond with its identifier, byvarying any parameter of the power that is capable of being detected bythe mobile device. For instance, the authenticator may cause the powersource 122 a to vary the voltage, phase or current of the power, orsimply turn the power on and off, so as to encode the identifier in thepower received via the connectors 115 and 124 a. In response toreceiving this identifier, the mobile device can execute the algorithm,using the received identifier and its own unique identifier as inputs,to obtain a result value. This result value is sent to the authenticatorduring the authentication period. Applying an inverse of the algorithmto the received result value, the authenticator can then derive theunique identifier of the mobile device. This derived identifier can thenbe checked against the table of authorized identifiers to authenticatethe mobile device.

In the first embodiment described above, the communication between themobile device and the authenticator are carried out via the power lineconnection, through current draws or other forms of modulation of thepower delivered to the mobile device. In a second embodiment describedhereinafter, wireless RF communication can be employed to transmit atleast some of the information that is exchanged between the mobiledevice and one or more authenticators.

Now referring to FIG. 4, at step 410, when the mobile device 110 isplugged into a power outlet, it may broadcast a message toauthenticators within operational range (e.g., authenticators 130 a and130 b) via the network interface 112 and antenna 119. The broadcastmessage may advertise an intent for mobile device 110 to charge. Firstauthenticator 130 a and second authenticator 130 b may each send aresponse message to mobile device 110 to initiate a load pattern, atsteps 420 and 430, respectively. The load pattern may be specific toeach authenticator, and/or a time stamp. Alternatively, the pattern maybe specific to mobile device 110, a fixed pattern, or portions of theload pattern may be a combination thereof. In certain exemplaryembodiments, the load pattern may be based on a unique identifier of themobile device 110 and may be obscured by hashing the unique identifierwith a hash algorithm.

Responsive to receiving one or more response messages from firstauthenticator 130 a and second authenticator 130 b, at step 440 mobiledevice 110 may determine which one of the authenticators in itsoperational range (e.g., first authenticator 130 a or secondauthenticator 130 b) to select for authentication. The selection ofauthenticator 130 a or authenticator 130 b may be based on theauthenticator having the highest signal strength. Alternatively, or inaddition, the mobile device may store a list of known addresses, andselect an authenticator based on an address included in the responsesfrom the authenticators. Mobile device 110 may draw charge according tothe load pattern established with the selected authenticator (e.g.,first authenticator 130 a).

Although first authenticator 130 a and second authenticator 130 b areshown in the timing diagram of FIG. 4, it is contemplated that more orfewer authenticators may be within operating range of mobile device 110and each authenticator may send a response message and monitor forcharge draw. In certain exemplary embodiments, the selection of theauthenticator may be improper (i.e., mobile device 110 may choose anauthenticator associated with an electric metering site not connected tomobile device 110). FIG. 4 depicts a situation in which the mobiledevice 110 selects the second authenticator 130 b, but it is connectedto the power source associated with the first authenticator 130 a. Atstep 450, the authenticator which discovers a load draw after sending aresponse message to mobile device 110 (in this case authenticator 130 a)may send a further response message to indicate to mobile device 110that the authenticator has monitored a charge draw and also indicatingthe proper load pattern for the mobile device 110. At step 460, mobiledevice 110 may then determine the proper authenticator and draw chargeaccording to the load pattern established with the proper authenticator.

At step 470, based on the monitoring at step 420, first authenticator130 a (as the selected authenticator) determines that mobile device 110is drawing charge according to the load pattern indicated in theresponse message at step 420. First authenticator 130 a may send anacknowledgment of the pairing of mobile device 110 with first electricmetering site 120 a and may enable the initiation of a charge sessionfor mobile device 110 based on the detected load pattern (e.g., whenresponsive to the load pattern being detected).

In certain embodiments the reselection of an authenticator may beeliminated if the load pattern is based on only the uniqueidentification associated with mobile device 110, such as a Mac addressor other unique identifier.

Now referring to FIG. 5, at step 510, the charging system of mobiledevice 110 (e.g., a plug-in vehicle) may be prepared for charging. Atstep 520, the mobile device's network interface (e.g., the plug-invehicle's network interface card) may advertise to all authenticators(e.g., all meter network interface cards) stored in the mobile device'smemory 117 (e.g., as a neighborhood table in memory 117) the plug-invehicle's intent to charge. At step 525, the mobile device's networkinterface receives acknowledgement from the neighboring NICs in responseto the advertisement, indicating their readiness to detect a message. Atstep 530, the charging system 111 of plug-in vehicle 110 may initiate aseries of loading following a pattern indicative of third partyelectrical loads. At step 540, neighboring meter network interface cardsthat acknowledge vehicle advertisement monitor the load registers oftheir respective meters at a predetermined interval. For example, thesampling interval for load registers associated with meters that may beused for charging the plug-in vehicle's charging system may be increasedfrom a normal sample range of about 30 seconds to about five minutes, toa faster range of about five seconds to about one minute, depending onthe metering unit 126 a used. At step 550, the neighboring meter networkinterface card may determine whether to acknowledge the load pattern.Responsive to the neighboring meter network interface controller 132 aacknowledging the load pattern of the third party load, at step 570, theload pairing of first electric metering site 120 a and plug-in vehicle110 are verified using any of the previously disclosed authenticationprocesses. At step 560, if the neighboring meter network interfacecontroller does not acknowledge the load pattern of the third partyload, the monitoring of the load registers of the neighboring meter(e.g., meter unit 126 a) may resume normal operations. For example, thesampling interval of the meter registers may be adjusted to a normalinterval.

At step 575, if the load pairing of the first electric metering site 120a and plug-in electric vehicle 110 is validated, the meter seal of theplug-in vehicle 110 is validated. At step 580, if the load pairing isnot verified at step 570, the vehicle charging system is locked out. Forexample, the load switch 128 a of first electric metering site 120 a maybe disconnected by meter network interface controller 132 a. Further, ifthe meter seal of plug-in vehicle 110 is not validated, the vehiclecharging system of plug-in vehicle 110 may be locked out at step 580. Ifthe meter seal of plug-in vehicle 110 is validated at step 575, the backoffice determines whether the customer account associated with theplug-in vehicle is valid at step 585. For example, the back office 150may determine that the customer account has sufficient pre-paid funds orthat a valid credit account is associated with the customer account. Ifthe customer account is validated, the back office may send a chargingcommencement message to the meter network interface controller 132 tocommence charging at step 590. If the customer account is determined tobe invalid by back office 150, the back office may send an invalidaccount message to meter network interface controller 132 a at step 580to cause vehicle charging system of plug-in vehicle 110 to be lockedout.

In another embodiment, the mobile device may first attempt to discoverpotential hosts within its communication range. Referring to FIG. 6, atstep 610, mobile device 110 may broadcast a message to discover othercommunication nodes in operational range (e.g., one-hop nodes orneighboring nodes). For example, mobile device 110 may broadcast amessage to first authenticator 130 a and second authenticator 130 b. Anyneighboring node (authenticator) receiving the broadcast messagedirectly from mobile device 110 may respond by sending a responsemessage establishing the respective node (authenticator) as aneighboring or one-hop node. For example, at step 620, firstauthenticator 130 a may receive directly from mobile device 110 thebroadcast message, and may reply with a response message indicating thatauthenticator 130 a is a neighboring or one-hop node of mobile device110. This response may include instructions to initiate a general chargepattern. At step 630, second authenticator 130 b may receive thebroadcast message directly from mobile device 110 and may send aresponse message with instructions to for a charge pattern, establishingsecond authenticator 130 b as a neighboring or one-hop node as well.

Mobile device 110 may receive the response messages from theauthenticators which neighbor the mobile device. At step 640, the mobiledevice may send a message to the established neighboring nodes thatmobile device 110 is initiating a series of current draws. In certainexemplary embodiments the current draws may be below a threshold leveland/or may be a predetermined/fixed series of charge draws that aregeneric to third-party connections. At step 650, mobile device 110 mayinitiate a series of charge draws according to the instructed pattern,and at steps 660 and 670 first authenticator 130 a and secondauthenticator 130 b may monitor for the series of charge draws,respectively. In the example of FIG. 6, the mobile device is connectedto the power source 122 a associated with authenticator 130 a. Firstauthenticator 130 a, upon detecting the current draw, may send anacknowledgment message instructing the mobile device to draw chargebased on a unique, predetermined, specified, or negotiated load patternand may monitor for charge draw according to the instructed loadpattern, at step 680. Mobile device 110 may receive the acknowledgmentmessage and may draw charge according to the instructed load pattern, atstep 690. At step 695, the authenticator may enable a charge session formobile device 110 upon detection of the instructed load pattern andverification through the back office system.

From the foregoing, therefore, it can be seen that the disclosedembodiments provide techniques for associating and authenticating amobile device with external power sources that can be used to charge thedevice. Communication between the mobile device and the power source iscarried out via the manner in which the device draws power from thesource. In some embodiments, wireless communication between the mobiledevice and the power source are used to enhance the capabilities forpairing the mobile device with the power source, and authenticating thedevice.

Once the pairing and authentication have been achieved, variousapproaches can be employed to quantify the amount of charge delivered tothe mobile device. In one implementation, a standard rate of charge drawcan be established for a given category of device. By measuring theduration of the charging period, the authenticator at the location ofthe power source can determine the amount of charge delivered, andreport it to the back office 150, for debiting the account of the deviceowner.

In another implementation, a sealed, tamper-proof meter can be installedin the mobile device and connected to its wireless network interface112. Once the pairing has been established, the authenticator or theback office can send a command via the network interface, to beginmeasuring the current draw, and report back, either during thetransaction period or upon completion of the period.

If metering is possible at both the site of the source and within themobile device, the charge amount measured at each location can bechecked against one another for confirmation. In addition, the amountmeasured at the source can be employed to check the calibration, and/ordetect tampering, of the meter in the mobile device.

Thus, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that thepresent invention can be embodied in other specific forms withoutdeparting from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. Thepresently disclosed embodiments are therefore considered in all respectsto be illustrative and not restricted. The scope of the invention isindicated by the appended claims rather than the foregoing descriptionand all changes that come within the meaning and range and equivalencethereof are intended to be embraced therein.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system for managing a charging session with amobile device, comprising: a mobile device; and a wireless communicationnetwork comprised of a plurality of nodes, each node being associatedwith a charging device and configured to communicate between theassociated charging device and the mobile device, wherein the mobiledevice is configured to send a broadcast message to one or more of theplurality of nodes in the wireless communication network requesting acharging session, receive an instruction from one of the plurality ofnodes in the network to initiate a unique load pattern associated withthe mobile device, in response to the broadcast message, and draw acharge in accordance with the unique load pattern corresponding to thereceived instruction.
 2. The system of claim 1, further comprising: aplurality of charging devices, wherein each charging device isassociated with a corresponding one of the plurality of nodes of thewireless communication network.
 3. The system of claim 2, wherein eachcharging device is configured to receive an authentication signal fromthe mobile device and respectively authenticate the mobile device basedon the received authentication signal.
 4. The system of claim 2, whereineach charging device is configured to supply power to the mobile devicefrom a power source based on the unique load pattern corresponding tothe received instruction.
 5. The system of claim 1, wherein thebroadcast message includes an authentication signal, each node of theplurality of nodes is configured to authenticate the mobile device usingthe authentication signal, and the instruction is sent to the mobiledevice from the one of the plurality of nodes subsequent toauthentication of the mobile device.
 6. The system of claim 1, furthercomprising: a back office system configured to associate the chargedrawn by the mobile device with an account associated with the mobiledevice.
 7. A system for managing a charging session with a mobiledevice, comprising: a mobile device; and a wireless communicationnetwork comprised of a plurality of nodes, each node being associatedwith a charging device and configured to communicate between theassociated charging device and the mobile device, wherein the mobiledevice is configured to send a broadcast message to one or more of theplurality of nodes in the wireless communication network requesting acharging session, receive a corresponding instruction from at least twoof the plurality of nodes in the wireless communication network toinitiate a corresponding unique load pattern respectively associatedwith a corresponding one of the at least two nodes, select one of thereceived instructions for execution, and draw a charge in accordancewith the unique load pattern corresponding to the selected instruction.8. The system of claim 7, further comprising: a plurality of chargingdevices, wherein each charging device is associated with a correspondingone of the plurality of nodes of the wireless communication network. 9.The system of claim 8, wherein each charging device is configured toreceive an authentication signal from the mobile device and respectivelyauthenticate the mobile device based on the received authenticationsignal.
 10. The system of claim 8, wherein each charging device isconfigured to supply power to the mobile device from a power sourcebased on the unique load pattern corresponding to the receivedinstruction.
 11. The system of claim 7, wherein the broadcast messageincludes an authentication signal, each node of the plurality of nodesis configured to authenticate the mobile device using the authenticationsignal, and the corresponding instructions are sent to the mobile devicefrom the at least two of the plurality of nodes subsequent tocorresponding authentication of the mobile device by the at least twonodes, respectively.
 12. The system of claim 7, further comprising: aback office system configured to associate the charge drawn by themobile device with an account associated with the mobile device.
 13. Amethod for managing a charging session with a mobile device, comprising:sending, from a mobile device, a broadcast message requesting a chargingsession to at least one node among a plurality of nodes of a wirelesscommunication network, wherein each node is associated with a chargingdevice and is configured to communicate between the associated chargingdevice and the mobile device; receiving, by the mobile device, aninstruction from one of the plurality of nodes in the network toinitiate a unique load pattern associated with the mobile device, inresponse to the broadcast message; and drawing a charge at the mobiledevice in accordance with the unique load pattern corresponding to thereceived instruction.
 14. The method of claim 13, wherein a plurality ofcharging devices are respectively associated with a corresponding one ofthe plurality of nodes, and wherein the method comprises: receiving, byeach charging device associated with a corresponding one of the nodes,an authentication signal from the mobile device; and authenticating, byeach charging device, the mobile device based on the receivedauthentication signal.
 15. The method of claim 13, wherein the chargedrawn by the mobile device is supplied from the charging deviceassociated with the one of the plurality of nodes.
 16. The method ofclaim 13, wherein the broadcast message includes an authenticationsignal, the plurality of nodes respectively authenticate the mobiledevice using the authentication signal, and the instruction is sent tothe mobile device from the one of the plurality of nodes subsequent toauthentication of the mobile device.
 17. The method of claim 13, furthercomprising: associating, by a back office system, the charge drawn bythe mobile device with an account associated with the mobile device. 18.A method for managing a charging session with a mobile device,comprising: sending, from a mobile device, a broadcast messagerequesting a charging session to at least one node among a plurality ofnodes of a wireless communication network, wherein each node isassociated with a charging device and is configured to communicatebetween the associated charging device and the mobile device; receiving,by the mobile device, a corresponding instruction from at least two ofthe plurality of nodes in the network to initiate a corresponding uniqueload pattern respectively associated with a corresponding one of the atleast two nodes; selecting, by the mobile device, one of the receivedinstructions for execution; and drawing a charge at the mobile device inaccordance with the unique load pattern corresponding to the selectedinstruction.
 19. The method of claim 18, further comprising: receiving,by each charging device associated with a corresponding one of thenodes, an authentication signal from the mobile device; andauthenticating, by each charging device, the mobile device based on thereceived authentication signal.
 20. The method of claim 18, wherein thecharge drawn by the mobile device is supplied from the charging deviceassociated with the one of the plurality of nodes.
 21. The method ofclaim 18, wherein the broadcast message includes an authenticationsignal, the plurality of nodes respectively authenticate the mobiledevice using the authentication signal, and the correspondinginstructions are sent to the mobile device from the at least two of theplurality of nodes subsequent to corresponding authentication of themobile device by the at least two nodes, respectively.
 22. The method ofclaim 18, further comprising: associating, by a back office system, thecharge drawn by the mobile device with an account associated with themobile device.
 23. A mobile device, comprising: a network interfaceconfigured to establish a communication session with a wirelesscommunication network comprised of a plurality of nodes, each node beingassociated with a charging device and configured to communicate betweenthe associated charging device and the mobile device; a transceiverconfigured to send a broadcast message to one or more of the pluralityof nodes in the wireless communication network requesting a chargingsession, and receive an instruction from one of the plurality of nodesin the network to initiate a unique load pattern associated with themobile device, in response to the broadcast message; and a controllerconfigured to draw a charge in accordance with the unique load patterncorresponding to the received instruction.
 24. The mobile device ofclaim 23, wherein each charging device is associated with acorresponding one of the plurality of nodes of the network, thetransceiver is configured to transmit an authentication signal to thecorresponding charging devices respectively associated with theplurality of nodes, and the controller is configured to draw the chargein accordance with the unique load pattern from the charging deviceassociated with the one of the plurality of nodes upon beingauthenticated by the charging device associated with the one of theplurality of nodes.
 25. The mobile device of claim 23, wherein thecharge drawn by the controller of the mobile device is supplied by acharging device respectively associated with the one of the plurality ofnodes and is based on the unique load pattern corresponding to thereceived instruction.
 26. The mobile device of claim 23, wherein thebroadcast message includes an authentication signal, the plurality ofnodes are configured to respectively authenticate the mobile deviceusing the authentication signal, and the instruction is sent to themobile device from the one of the plurality of nodes subsequent toauthentication of the mobile device.
 27. The mobile device of claim 23,wherein a back office system connected to the network is configured toassociate the charge drawn by the controller of the mobile device withan account associated with the mobile device.
 28. A mobile device,comprising: a network interface configured to establish a communicationsession with a wireless communication network comprised of a pluralityof nodes, each node being associated with a charging device andconfigured to communicate between the associated charging device and themobile device; a transceiver configured to send a broadcast message toone or more of the plurality of nodes in the wireless communicationnetwork requesting a charging session, and receive a correspondinginstruction from at least two of the plurality of nodes in the wirelesscommunication network to initiate a corresponding unique load patternrespectively associated with a corresponding one of the at least twonodes; and a controller configured to select one of the receivedinstructions for execution, and draw a charge in accordance with theunique load pattern corresponding to the selected instruction.
 29. Themobile device of claim 28, wherein each charging device is associatedwith a corresponding one of the plurality of nodes of the network, thetransceiver is configured to transmit an authentication signal to thecorresponding charging devices respectively associated with theplurality of nodes, and the controller is configured to draw the chargein accordance with the unique load pattern corresponding to the selectedinstruction from the charging device associated with one of theplurality of nodes from which the selected instruction was received,upon being authenticated by the charging device associated with the oneof the plurality of nodes.
 30. The mobile device of claim 28, whereinthe charge drawn by the controller of the mobile device is supplied by acharging device respectively associated with one of the plurality ofnodes from which the selected instruction was received, and the chargedrawn by the controller is based on the unique load patterncorresponding to the received instruction.
 31. The mobile device ofclaim 28, wherein the broadcast message includes an authenticationsignal, each node of the plurality of nodes is configured toauthenticate the mobile device using the authentication signal, and theinstruction is sent to the mobile device from the one of the pluralityof nodes subsequent to the authentication of the mobile device.
 32. Themobile device of claim 28, wherein a back office system of the networkis configured to associate the charge drawn by the controller of themobile device with an account associated with the mobile device.